Using Industrial Shrink Wrap in Construction

Any Questions About Shrink Wrapping?

FAQs

Some of the common questions that installers need to consider when planning to set-up a shrink installation service are as follows:

What type of customers do you plan to service?

Here at EnCaPS we cater for all, whether that be providing a temporary roof on a bungalow in a more domestic area, to high end commercial buildings for the most ideal and professional appearance for a building site. The great thing about our product is that it stands out as being the best from all the rest. It provides a level of containment rarely found in with any other product in our Industry doubled up with robust weather protection and aesthetically pleasing to the public and management. There are cheaper alternatives yes, just like there are more expensive ones, but Shrink wrap is the best solution to a huge array if problems within the construction industry, this is why you are seeing it more and more. So whatever your customer is, we can help.

What types of projects do you have?

From personal professional working experience, we have found that shrink wrap encapsulation for containment or weather protection is beneficial when working on large scale projects on an industrial level. When you work on creating a screen to prevent dust entering an office area, build a scaffolding for painting or sandblasting, set up scaffolding at exposed locations etc. these are where the true benefits of shrink wrap can be seen. It is used in a similar manner to traditional scaffolding materials and is used in many ways e.g. for containment, temporary roofing as a partition etc. At times it is used to spruce up the appearance of a project, especially in prestigious locations. It is also used commonly in the transporation industry to keep goods dry and safe whilst on the back of lorries. You will also see shrink wrap all around docks and boat yards, people seeking to protect their investments throughout winter months or to provide a safe and dry environment during a restoration or re spray project.

How do you convince customers about the benefits of scaffold shrink wrap?

In brief shrink wrap scaffolding is specifically designed for those projects that require 100% levels of containment or weather protection. If your customer has neither of the two requirements they will not value the benefits and not be willing to spend extra. People will naturally seek the cheapest alternative but will rarely factor in the unknown or prepare for a worst case scenario like long periods of bad weather. Situations like this when using conventional forms of sheeting can cause delays with a workforce, especially if the working environment needs to be dry or maintain a respectable temperature level. Shrink wrap has a much higher chance of providing this, some jobs lasting for more than a year before needing repairs.

Some of the benefits of shrink wrap are as follows:

Very smart professional appearance
Sealed drum tight around the scaffolding and does not detach in the strongest winds.
Heat sealed joints prevent containment of dust and material

Will you be able to spare the extra time to learn?

Another important point to take into consideration is the time factor. Mastering the art of shrink wrap installation has its own learning curve, like any other new service or product. Unlike traditional scaffolding materials shrink wrap is not attached lift by lift. Shrink wrap is a multipurpose product that can be used in numerous ways. It requires an on-the-job project to actually get the necessary experience.

Does the quantity of work justify the cost?

As with any other task to master shrink wrap, scaffolding one needs regular practice to gain experience. If there are few and far between projects e.g. once in six months the team will lack in practice and may not be able to get the job done well. In such a situation it is best to engage the services of a specialist installation company such as ourselves.

Why should you opt to learn scaffold shrink wrapping?
Three of the main reasons to learn shrink wrapping is as follows:

You find that using traditional style scaffolding results in having to return frequently to replace it in windy conditions.

To stay a step ahead of your competitors and offer a new and innovative product, having demanding customers who expect very high standards or protection and containment, which cannot be offered through the use of traditional scaffolding film.

What cost to charge for shrink wrapping?

As with other services, prices tend to differ between service providers. A basic guideline is as follows:
The general norm that installers charge is about £6/m2 Supply & Fix. This is an average rate. For smaller projects (less than 100 sq mt) they could charge more. For temporary roofs, the going rate is approximately £7 per sq mt. For large indoor projects where the installation is not hampered by external weather conditions, there may be a lower rate.

Most shrink wrap jobs are done anywhere between £5.50-£7 per sq mt. At no stage can you offer customers as a low-cost option that is something you need to be clear about. Also, the price of other similar high-quality scaffolding materials and scaffolding shrink wrap film is not too much. One area where you might benefit as a scaffolder in terms of flexible pricing is that your team could be on-site in comparison to engaging the services of a specialist shrink wrap.

How much will it cost to install scaffold shrink wrap?

From personal experience the breakdown of the cost of installation of shrink wrap is as follows:

Labour:

The guideline is £1/m2 divided by your workforce. With labour rates priced at about £150 per day and installation of a minimum of 150 sq mt of shrink wrap per team member, per day the labour costs work out to approximately £1/m2. Of course, if extensive travelling is involved the cost will be higher.

Materials:

This is generally £2 per sq mt. The materials comprise shrink wrap sheets @£1.77 sq mt. The standard size of a roll of shrink wrap in the UK is 7m (width) x 15m (length). At a thickness of 300 microns, it is about 30 kg with an area of 105 sq mt. Per roll £186 it is about £1.77/ sq mt.
Additional materials include gas £0.05p /sq mt and shrink wrap patch tape £0.18p per sq mt.

Once we have the basics in place including reasons to opt for shrink wrap or (not opt) and seen the costs, it broadly works out for fully installed shrink wrap at £6 sq mt based on the material and labour costs of around £3 per sq mt.

Getting started:

The very first thing is to get the equipment and materials from a supplier. You need to use the best quality materials to ensure you are able to maintain the highest standards of quality.

Get In Touch Today!

For a quotation we will need the most accurate dimensions of the scaffold as you can provide, preferably the scaffold design drawings, along with as much information on the works as possible, i.e. location, working hours, etc.

A face to face meeting to assess your project is beneficial for both parties. This will allow us to discuss your requirements and indeed ours in respect of what we need to make your scaffold both safe and ready for Shrink Wrap.

You can use the form below or you can call us on 01202 934933 or 07796 541244.